In baseball, we have home runs, and then there are moonshots. Oneil Cruz performed a moonshot, but more about that later. Sometimes, as a baseball player, it is good to hit the ball that just makes everyone lose their consciousness and focus on how far and high the ball is going. You need to take them out of their heads and into the sky. Occasionally, if this happens, it just makes the sport interesting, and as a player, it makes you feel proud. So, you do not need to study or read and examine baseball to understand when something exceptional happens, and that is what we will delve into in this article.
It is not just about swinging; it is more than that
Okay, so it might look like swinging and hitting the ball so hard it gets out of the stadium is sports drama; well, it is leveling up someone’s career because of that. This is making headlines because that is not just swinging but a skillset that any other baseball player who has not reached it is yearning to reach. Such moments go beyond commentators but are on repeat on television and social media (the internet).
A swing means a player is growing; he has a good eye for the ball, and his strength is sharpened. I mean, think about it; 122.9 mph is not a joke. This player made it look so effortless that it could be an inspiration for emerging players to learn the skill set he has. He swung like a giant, and before we knew it, the ball disappeared into thin air – unbelievable.
The hardest-hit ball record was set by Oneil Cruz
It left the stadium; that is how hard and far it was hit. He even broke his own record. It was just a regular baseball game on a Sunday, you know, fans watching, players doing things, very calm and quiet until Oneil Cruz decided to stimulate some energy. The funny part is that he did not even expect it to go that far. He expressed after the game and said:
“I connected really well. It feels even better just to know that it’s the hardest-hit ball in the history of Statcast.”
After watching the video on X, my jaw dropped, and here is why
- A velocity of 122.9 mph at exit.
- Breaks the hardest-hit ball mark set by MLB during the Statcast era.
- Like a bullet, the ball departed the bat, and
- It came at a moment when no one expected it.
Oneil Cruz just showed us that the impossible can be possible
Oneil Cruz does have a reputation for making jaws drop here and there, so it is not something new and mind-blowing; however, he just knows how to catch us off guard. Being one of the favourite baseball players, he just has that aura that everyone is drawn to his talent. This time around, though, he really got us off guard, and this made headlines because he just broke a barrier.
A statement has been made: “Oneil Cruz breaks hardest-hit-ball record after 122.9 mph homer.” While this is not something one can be taught, it says a lot about his strength. This is just a stepping stone. Is he a threat now? Maybe, maybe not, but he certainly is going to be one of the best and elite players in the seasons to come, and the expectation bar has just gone higher. He has just given his team, the Pittsburgh Pirates, a player that will shape the sports dynamics and put the team on a pedestal. Oneil Cruz now owns the two hardest-hit balls in the past 10 years.
